The SINGLE GREATEST MOMENT in TOS !!!

Considering all the great moments in The Original Series - be it: humor, action, suspense, intrigue, drama, or what-have-you - which scene, or single 'snap-shot', do you personally consider as:

'The Single Greatest Moment in TOS',... and more importantly, why ?

I'll start the ball rolling with my own personal 'winner'; though I must admit, it is only by an extremely thin margin that my personal vote does not go to KIRK's narrow escape of the booby-trapped Starship via a malfunctioning transporter in Norman Spinrad's, 'Doomsday Machine'.

Although both the 'Doomsday' and 'Arena' escape scenes have a high level of tension and consequence of failure - as both scenes rely on same dramatic device, that of playing 'beat-the-clock' - yet I feel the Brown/Coon scene wins by a nose for its use of having the added dimension of requiring KIRK to construct his own method of victory/escape, through sheer ingenuity and resourcefulness, ala' McGyver - while being chased no less! - rather than solely relying on the tension of being beamed-up in the nick-of-time; as effective as that is on its own.

Again, while it is an incredibly close-call for me, I personally must give my award to: KIRK defeats the GORN, via the make-shift cannon on Cestus III, as the SINGLE GREATEST MOMENT IN ALL OF TOS.

Before I read your actual posting, the conclusion of DOOMSDAY MACHINE automatically shot to my head. But I'm going to have to think long and hard on this one. For now, if we include the first six movies, I have to consider the destruction of the ENTERPRISE in THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK. It's the ultimate undoable moment in Classic Trek, whether they get a replacement lookalike ship or not.

Leaving out the films, the next moment that comes to mind is the death of Alexis Carringt------I'm sorry, Edith Keeler.

...Leaving out the films, the next moment that comes to mind is the death of Alexis Carringt------I'm sorry, Edith Keeler.

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Right FOXHOT, only looking at the 78 original series episodes, but you left out the most important part of your answer being the 'why' you award the scene or 'snap-shot' you have choosen. Please illuminate us!.

Kirk understands that there are casualties. Risk is their business. But this is one of the few times when he has to deliberately sacrifice someone for a greater good, and it was someone he loved. It's not an easy choice, it hurts Kirk a great deal, and the episode's delivery is extremely effective.

Kirk understands that there are casualties. Risk is their business. But this is one of the few times when he has to deliberately sacrifice someone for a greater good, and it was someone he loved. It's not an easy choice, it hurts Kirk a great deal, and the episode's delivery is extremely effective.

Sorry, nope, not at all. The best moment for me, since I first saw it on a hazy black and white TV in the early 70s?

There were no special effects to it -- no explosions. No alien mysticism or anything. It was after Kirk had ruined Balok's spacecraft, and yet decided to go back: a chance to "demonstrate what our high-sounding words mean."

There are many...I enjoy two that come to mind immediately...when Kirk looks up into the sky as he realizes they are totally alone due to the Guardian's time change in CoTEoF. Also when Bele looks incredulously at the non-understanding Kirk as he tries to explain why Lokai is inferior in LTBYLB.

When they seek to understand and communicate with the Horta instead of blasting her to kingdom come out of rage and self-defense. We rise above our animal self-preservation instinct to be truly human (and Vulcan).

I chose FOREVER's ending for the ending, plus the acting, the tragedy of course, plus the message which foreshadows Spock's death in TREK II of one life for many. Morning laziness kept me from elaborating too much, but it's an obvious candidate for most classic moment for all the obvious reasons. Even edited from Harlan Ellison's original version it still had a helluva lot of power. We'll never know whether it would have been received as well had Kirk deliberately prepared to SAVE Edith as in the original script. But that's what true love does to you.

Gotta admit, a lot of people hit on Edge Of Forever, and I have to agree. When I watched that girl get nailed by that car.. And Kirk was powerless to stop it. That sad thing was she had the right idea, at the wrong time. She had to die.

Others have already mentioned the drama of Kirk's escape from the Constellation in "The Doomsday Machine", Kirk's realization that Edith Keeler must die, the Spock/Amanda scene, and the "Risk is our business" speech. All of them are great. But for me, the one that made me a life-long Star Trek fan...

When they seek to understand and communicate with the Horta instead of blasting her to kingdom come out of rage and self-defense. We rise above our animal self-preservation instinct to be truly human (and Vulcan).

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This one. The moment when the Horta is transformed in Kirk's mind from a monster killing the miners and his crew into a mother desperately defending her children from the humans who are killing them.

There are other episodes that I love and which carry messages which have resonated me all my life, but the epiphany in "The Devil In The Dark", that the humans have been the villains all along and that they need to make amends, was incredibly powerful to me.

Others have already mentioned the drama of Kirk's escape from the Constellation in "The Doomsday Machine", Kirk's realization that Edith Keeler must die, the Spock/Amanda scene, and the "Risk is our business" speech. All of them are great. But for me, the one that made me a life-long Star Trek fan...

When they seek to understand and communicate with the Horta instead of blasting her to kingdom come out of rage and self-defense. We rise above our animal self-preservation instinct to be truly human (and Vulcan).

Click to expand...

This one. The moment when the Horta is transformed in Kirk's mind from a monster killing the miners and his crew into a mother desperately defending her children from the humans who are killing them.

There are other episodes that I love and which carry messages which have resonated me all my life, but the epiphany in "The Devil In The Dark", that the humans have been the villains all along and that they need to make amends, was incredibly powerful to me.

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Yes!, the transformation of KIRK's perception and attitude,... absolutely the KEY,.... Outstanding point!

In additional effect is that it allows the HORTA to function within the story as a whole character with its own motivations and purpose, rather being trapped into functioning within the story as a 'simple monster',... stuck playing only 'monster attack' scenes.

It is at this moment when the quality of story is allow to raise yet another level in sophistication, and explore other avenues of a more meaningful purpose - which in turn raises the level of enjoyment and meaning for us, as viewers.